Georgia Bulldogs: Alabama football

Several of RecruitingNation's SEC sites took a look this week at the players headed to the NFL combine, which begins today in Indianapolis, and other predraft camps. Click here to readthe entire predraft series. Today: Defensive backs and special teams.

After a huge day with six players in attendance at Monday’s combine workouts, Georgia will send three more to the field for Tuesday’s defensive back workouts. The Bulldogs conceivably could have three players drafted as safeties in April, as Shawn Williams and Bacarri Rambo both played the position throughout their college careers and project there as pros, while Sanders Commings could shift from cornerback -- where he played the vast majority of his snaps as a Bulldog -- to safety at the next level.

Several of RecruitingNation's SEC sites will look this week at the players headed to the NFL combine, which begins Friday in Indianapolis, and other predraft camps. Today: Defensive linemen and linebackers.

Georgia’s time to shine in Indianapolis will arrive Monday, when the defensive linemen and linebackers take the field for their combine workouts. The Bulldogs will have six players on the field, including a trio -- John Jenkins, Jarvis Jones and Alec Ogletree -- who have a strong chance to become first-round draft picks in April.

NG Kwame Geathers (Position rank: No. 14)
Strengths: Geathers’ greatest strength as a pro prospect is his size (6-foot-6, 355 pounds), which will likely convince an NFL team to draft him earlier than his college production might indicate. There is always a place in the league for oversized defensive linemen who can occupy multiple blockers, and Geathers certainly has the pedigree to become a longtime NFL performer, with several family members having played in the league.
Weaknesses: Of the draft-eligible juniors who opted to leave Georgia early, perhaps Geathers’ decision was the most questionable. He has never been a regular starter and was an inconsistent performer for much of his career. A team will likely draft him based on potential, but he still has a lot to work on before he becomes an NFL regular.
Comparison: Kade Weston. Much like Geathers, Weston was a massive interior lineman at Georgia several years back. The New England Patriots drafted him in the seventh round of the 2010 draft, but injuries kept him from playing for the team. He spent last season with the Edmonton Eskimos in the CFL.

It's only fitting that the best offensive line in college football would produce some of the most intriguing prospects in the NFL draft. Alabama will likely have three offensive linemen taken in the first few rounds in April, further proof of the talent that resided in Tuscaloosa this past season.

Perhaps it says something about LSU's offense in 2012 that among a record 13 players invited to the NFL combine from the Tigers, only two are offensive skill players who are generally considered, at this point, marginal talents. Running backs Spencer Ware and Michael Ford are the only skill players invited to Indianapolis, which is understandable when one considers LSU was 10th in the SEC in total offense. It's also a sign of youth. Quarterback Zach Mettenberger, fullback J.C. Copeland, running back Jeremy Hill and all of LSU's primary threats at wide receiver will return in 2013.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- ESPN 150 safety Antonio Conner (Batesville, Miss./South Panola) is set to make his decision at the Under Armour All-America Game on Friday. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound athlete will choose between Alabama, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, LSU and Georgia.

Despite making a decision, Conner plans to take all five official visits.

UNDER ARMOUR GAME 2013

There will be no shortage of talent, or college coaches, on the field at the Georgia Dome this weekend, as the GHSA football state championships are set to take place. All seven games will be broadcast live on Georgia Public Broadcasting TV, as well as streaming online at gpb.org/sports. Here are some prospects to keep an eye on in each of the seven matchups.

The top prospect in the opening matchup of the weekend is ESPN 150 defensive end Isaac Rochell. He committed to Notre Dame over 20 other offers back in June. His teammate, running back Keyante Green, is a ESPN 300 prospect who committed to Purdue during the summer after being previously committed to UCLA. Eagles Landing Christian Academy has two ESPN 2014 Watch List selections to keep an eye on as well in defensive end Andrew Williams and quarterback/athlete Dalton Etheridge. Williams, whose brother Anthony plays defensive end at Georgia Tech, looks to follow Rochell’s path as one of the most coveted prospects in Georgia.

DawgNation's David Ching and TideNation's Alex Scarborough take a look at Alabama and Georgia position-by-position as Saturday's SEC championship game between the second-ranked Crimson Tide (11-1) and third-ranked Bulldogs (11-1) approaches.

QUARTERBACKAlabama: It's hard to believe AJ McCarron is only a junior starting in his first SEC Championship. It seems like so long ago that he took over the reins from Greg McElroy and became the first underclassman to start and win the BCS National Championship Game. He learned how to treat big games like any other. The let-it-rip attitude has paid off this season as he ranks No. 2 in the country in passing efficiency while setting a school record for touchdown passes in a season.
Georgia: Junior Aaron Murray has already put together one of the best seasons in school history. Last week he became the first player in SEC history to pass for 3,000-plus yards in three straight seasons and tied Peyton Manning for second in career touchdown passes with 89. The national leader in passing efficiency (177.15), he has thrown 30 touchdowns and seven interceptions. The big question against Alabama, however, is whether Murray can play loose enough to be effective. He struggled against South Carolina and Florida, with one touchdown and four interceptions.

The seeds would be Oregon, Kansas State, Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia, Texas A&M, Florida and LSU. But how would it play out? ESPN Insider Travis Haney lines it up, gets some help from the oddsmakers, and picks his champion.

SEFFNER, Fla. -- Four-star running back Greg Bryant (Delray Beach, Fla./American Heritage) led his team Friday night to a 36-28 upset win over Seffner (Fla.) Armwood, the top-ranked school in class 6A.

The 5-foot-11, 197-pound totaled 44 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries and added an acrobatic 52-yard reception. Bryant, whose two touchdowns went for 25 and 3 yards, also played defensive back for the Stallions in the second half.

As for recruiting, Bryant says South Carolina, Auburn and Georgia stand out, and now there is a new team in the mix for the talented running back.

Every season the stars of college football change. The crop is turned over and we meet the new faces of the sport. Sometimes those players jump out and surprise us, rising from part-time role players to the feature of an offense or defense. Who will those players be in 2012? Travis Haney looks at 30 potential breakout players this season.

The University of Alabama already has commitments from O.J. Howard and Josh McNeil, two of the top five tight ends in the country, but that hasn’t stopped the Crimson Tide from going after one more in this class.

On Monday, ESPN 150 tight end Greg Taboada visited Tuscaloosa for the second time this summer. He toured the campus, talked with people in the business department and met with the coaching staff.

“Coach [Chris] Rumph is my main recruiter, and after the first time I was there, he had been getting on me to just come back one more time, so he could set up the whole tour,” Taboada said. “They just wanted me to come back one more time and get a better idea of what they’re about and all that.”

In June, ESPN 150 running back Derrick Henry decommitted from Georgia after visiting the University of Alabama. He consequently named the Crimson Tide his leader. Henry returned to Tuscaloosa over the weekend for one more visit this summer at head coach Nick Saban’s request.

“It was fun,” Henry said. “Coach Saban wanted me to get up there one more time just to be around the coaches and be with all of the players and stuff, so we can get that chemistry. I had a real good time.”

The Yulee, Fla., native has not made a decision on his commitment, but it might have seemed he had when he was hanging out with Tide players Kenyan Drake, Geno Smith and Vinnie Sunseri. He and Sunseri spent the most time together.

After losing a commitment from Andy Dodd earlier in the day, the University of Alabama responded by adding a commitment from ESPN 150 tight end Josh McNeil, the No. 4-ranked tight end in the country.

McNeil, a native of Durham, N.C., visited Tuscaloosa on Thursday and Friday before making his decision public via Twitter late Friday night.

The 6-foot-5, 226-pound McNeil gives the Crimson Tide 17 verbal commitments in the 2013 class and a potentially dangerous tight end combination with O.J. Howard, the No. 2 tight end, already on board.

As a junior at Hillside High School, McNeil caught 58 passes for 575 yards and six touchdowns. It was his first year playing football. He chose Alabama over the likes of Florida, Georgia, Miami and Washington State.

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